Aravind Suresh Thakidayil

M. Mukundan's greatest work stands testimony to the tradition of Malayali writers to write simply about big things. Through words that stay with you for long, Mukundan describes the life and times of Dasan, a young Mahean boy who is trying to get by in an age of radical social change. Through the eyes of Dasan the toddler, Dasan the teenager, Dasan the Young and Dasan at-peace, the author writes of the Indian independence movement, the influence of the French in Mahe, and most of all, how people are, despite these grand events, living like nothing has happened. Few Malayalam novels have made me sit through and read the whole thing: I often get bored after two or three pages. But Mayyapuzhayude Theerangalil is a novel that capitvated me, for we live in times that are not very different from the one Dasan lived in.

In my opinion, Malayalam's most honest science fiction movie seriously fell behind when it refused to answer some key questions in the plot. While it is scary, I assure you, scary to the extent that heart disease patients should not watch, 9 is a movie that leaves the audience hanging at several turns. The screenplay and art are awesome, and the setting and location deserve special mention. All in all, a great movie.

Abida Parveen is rightfully the greatest Sufi singer of our times. In "Raqs-e-bismil", (literally, dance of the injured) she explores the borderlands between the soul and love. These songs are filled with the feeling of "bekhudi": of feeling oneself melt away, of attaining egolessness; of being one with the Universe. My favourite is undoubtedly: "Zahid ne Mera haasil-i-emaan nahin dekha, rukh par teri zulfon ko pareshaan nahin dekha" "Saints do not see the depth of my faith, for they have not seen your hair strewn across your face..."